Colorless rose
by Elvalight
Summary: AU. Anna is a poor villager forced to leave her house when she can no longer afford it. She travels in search of work and comes across a castle made of ice. When the mysterious queen of this castle allows her to stay, Anna's life is changed forever. Unrelated characters, possible Elsanna.
1. Chapter 1

Note: Sorry it's so short. My keyboard broke, so I'm using on-screen keyboard. Should get a new one soon :)

Everything was a blur to Anna as she fought to stay upright in the raging blizzard all around her. The cold pierced through her, making her quake as each breath she took felt like a punch to her stomach. She had been forced to leave her only home when she no longer could pay, even with her many attempts at working, no matter how low the job. With Winter hitting the lands, nobody was able to give her work, especially not in a time give her enough money. Poor villagers were looked down upon; the ones people looked for to give work to for were strong men. A normally optimistic personality was not nearly enough to substitute strength, and that was why, after fail after fail in her village, Anna was travelling through the storm for a new village to try. At this, point, she'd be willing to stay in a barn. Just any place to get her out of the cold. And food...now that she thought it, she hadn't eaten anything since yesterday; it was already evening, the clouds barely concealing a moon washing the snow with white light. An image of her mother gently stroking her hair by a warm fire ran through her head. Not so long ago, she couldn't have been happier. Though life was hard, she shared laughs and memories with her parents and friends. Her parents had died while on a fishing trip and that was where the nightmares began. The weeks on the brink of starvation, sleeping a hard ground with barely a wink of sleep. The only thing that kept her from giving up on hope was her friends, but even they had been going through Hell with the poverty and harshness of this year's Winter. Most girls like her either lived with family or married to someone with a good job, but nobody wanted a poor girl like her for a wife.

The night dragged on and she trudged through nearly knee-deep snow that melted through her dirty, plain brown dress and soaked her frozen legs and feet. She was beginning to feel lightheaded, all the blues, blacks and whites of the night getting mixed together in her head. Out of all the blurry mess she began to see something completely unexpected. In front of her, towering above her small figure was a castle. She gazed with her mouth open, taking in the scene. She didn't have any choice. It may merely be her imagination, but even so, if there was any chance at all that this was real, she was going to die if she didn't find shelter anyway. Forcing her legs to respond, she weakly made her way to the impossible castle, finding herself at the door before she could worry about what to say to anyone living there. She placed her numb hand on the cold door, begging her bones to obey even if for a few more moments. The was the small sound of knocking, and she stared blankly at the door, quickly losing her sight. A moment later, it opened, catching Anna off guard as she stumbled back. She looked up from her crouching position, amazed by what she saw. It was a woman, merely a years or two older than herself, by the looks of it. She couldn't make out much else with her watering eyes. She struggled to stand. It hurt, but she made herself speak, "H-hello?" she finally managed. She struggled for enough strength to speak, sucking another weak breath, but her throat seemed to tighten itself and lock her mouth shut. She had finally reached her limit. She fell at the woman's feet, feeling her eyes sink shut under the gaze of the woman. Everything fell to silence and the darkness replaced thought.


	2. Chapter 2

The light slowly made it's way past the haze of sleep that Anna had been pulled under, creeping steadily through what seemed like an eternity of dreams that kept her mind locked from the world. First she felt air entering her lungs, for once not the sting of blowing ice. Then she wiggled her fingers, finally being able to move them, which felt somewhat unfamiliar at this point. She then opened her eyes, one at a time, closing them as soon as the harsh light stung them. She groaned as she sat up, slowly allowing the light to adjust in her sight. It all was still blurry, but now she could see that she was in a strange white room. She breathed in, thankful to finally have such solitude. But as soon as that bit of comfort wore off, a panic rose up in her. Where was she? She could still remember a litle of traveling through the snow, but how did she get in here?

"Am I dead?" she spoke out loud, trying to regain the ability to open her mouth. Looking down, she had been laying on a soft bed, surrounded by what appeared to be glass on the floor. Her shoes were laying the floor, with her feet bare. The felt her face, feeling for the scar from when she had fallen in the snow and landed on a rock the day before. Instead of dried blood, she found a soft bandage. Though it still hurt, she certainly felt better than she had for the last week of traveling. She saw that she had been wrapped in a blue blanket, long and thick. She knew that no matter how she got here, she needed to be getting back to traveling, or else she might be met with a large prize of money for all this. The last thing she needed was to owe anyone something, especially seeing how she could barely walk, much less find any kind of a well-paying job. She quietly slipped her feet to the floor, stunned at how the glass floor barely felt cool at all, even with there being no fire in sight. She saw no cause of light, yet she could see quite well, which also made her question if she was still simply dreaming. She had probably fallen in the snow and dreamed this whole thing. She didn't want to leave the safety of the warm bed, but she finally stepped over to the doorway at the opposite end of the room. It seemed to be made of the same material as the floor, and she walls now that she looked. Placing her hand on the handle and pulling, it opened quite easily and made little to no sound as she timidly peeked out to see what might lay ahead. She nearly gasped at what she saw. As soon as she gathered the strength to step outside, before her lay two long stairways to a second floor, a massive expanse of floor and rooms, all of these things sparkling and covered by tapastry and rugs of rich colors. She stood in pure silence as she gazed at all these things, before finally tearing her eyes away as a new sight came into view. A face that she remembered from before she fell asleep, the woman that she saw. She was walking to the stairs from the darkness of a hallway above. Anna stared, not daring to move and not knowing what to do next. The woman, slowing walked down the stairway, gracefully and barely making a sound. Anna held her breath as the woman set eyes on her and came closer every moment. Anna fiddled with her fingers and tried to look as if she was looking somewhere other than at her. The woman finally stopped in front of her, Anna finally picking her eyes up to the same level. She wanted to just go back outside and take the snow and the suffering. Surely she had no right to talk to a person of such wealth and rank. She shut her eyes for a moment, gathering words to say, until she finally spoke.

"I-I'm sorry. For causing you trouble.M-my lady." she forced out, looking down and doing an awkward curtsey with her still weak legs, wobbling slightly. When she looked up, the woman seemed to show no emotions. Her face was still and calm, pale against her blue eyes.

"How do you feel?" the woman said, her voice calm as her expression.

"A bit weak, but alright, my Lady." she responded, clasping her hands together.

"Why were you out in the storm?" Anna then remembered the whole thing, a sinking feeling in her stomach as she remembered how much of a fool she must have seemed as she fell to the ground like a wounded animal.

"I-I was looking for work, my Lady, traveling to seek a new village, as mine could offer none." well, at least she wasn't lying. She decided to leave out the part when she mistook a wolf for a person and nearly got knawed to death. "I ran out of food the other day and saw this place and..." she didn't how to contenue. What extactly was she expecting? What right did a peasent like her have to intrude upon a place like this?

"Didn't you have a plan? A place to stay or people to travel with?" Anna shook her head at this, feeling like more of a fool than ever.

"I was forced to leave my home, my Lady, and my parents have died. I have no other family." A slight pang of sadness made her shut her eyes for a moment at the memory of them, but she quickly regained her control over herself.

"There are no other villages for days." these words made panic rise in Anna's stomach. She looked wide-eyed at the woman. "What is your name?"

"Anna, my lady." she muttered, still trying to think of where to go next.

"You may call me Elsa. If you truly have nowhere to go, then you may stay here. What can you do?" Anna's heart jumped.

"I-I can do anything you tell me to do!" she knew she must look idiotic, but if that meant she would have work, she didn't care. Even if this woman, Elsa, scared her, she would do anything to again have a place to stay.

"Alright then. You can stay. But if you do, you won't be able to leave this castle. Once you live here, you can't go to any village, visit any friend or anywhere outside of these castle grounds. If you do, you may not come back." she said nearly all of this with no emotion, yet as she spoke the last bit of it, she had a slight sting to her words. Parhaps she didn't much like people.

"I-I can't even leave for one day?"

"No!" Elsa's sudden harsh tone suprised Anna, and she sunk slightly into her coat. "If you want to leave now, you may. But if you stay, you can't leave. Think carefully before making that desision."

Anna stood as Elsa walked back up the stairs, heart pounding. What would she do now?


	3. Chapter 3

Note: I'm going on a camping trip this week and won't be back until Friday, so here's an update to keep you happy till then :3

Anna set her eyes on the outside. Could she really take a life stuck in place like this? Sure, it was beautiful and certainly a thousand times better than what she had left back in her village, but how would she cope with the loneliness? It all seemed too much to take in with her still feeling so weak from travel. She hadn't exactly been given a time that she had to give the queen her answer. She supposed that if she wanted to leave, she could. It wouldn't be easy and simple. Just walk out. Leave. Forget it ever happened and move on. But to where? Every place would be the same, nothing could be better. She sighed deeply, inhaling the soft, sweet scent of the castle air. She nonchalantly played with a braid and closed her eyes. She knew this was the best option. Sure, she had friends back home, but they couldn't help her. She knew they would let her stay if she asked, but there was no way she could put such a heavy burden on them. She was too much of a hassle to take care of. When she was younger, everyone always seemed to look out for her. If she stayed here, they could use the money they made on themselves instead of her, and she would live a quiet life, having food and shelter. It made sense, but it was scary. Elsa may be generous, but she certainly didn't seem like the kind of person who would enjoy other people's company, especially not some talkative person like she was. She knew her parents would want her to be happy, but she felt split in between these two choices that would become her future. But she decided then that this was what she would do. She would stay here, where she'd have a place to stay and food to eat, that way her friends would always have enough food to eat.

She rose to her feet and straightened her head, determined to not look back at the door for fear she'd change her mind.

She climbed up the stairs softly, shivering slightly at the chill, even though it didn't feel very cold. When she was at the floor above, she saw another set of stairs, ones she saw Elsa climb. They seemed to go on forever, into an impossibly high castle. She knew it would go much further, but stopped at the floor just above her, hearing the padding of feet across the icy floor. She gulped and stared into the sparkling hallway, which led to a large door in which she saw Elsa. Elsa was standing in the middle of the room, facing her as if she sensed her coming.

She didn't speak, but simply turned her gaze to the window, the clouds giving way to early evening.

"Elsa I have decided. Decided..." Anna paused, an emotions quickly flashing in her heart. "I have decided that I will stay here." Elsa stayed staring out the window, eyes not moving as a few flurries of snow passed by without care.

She simply said, "That's surprising." before passing by a quivering Anna. She let go of a breath she didn't she had been holding. She felt relieved, but at the same time she could barely believe what had happened. It wasn't as if this would be a terrible life, but it had all happened so quickly. Picking up her head, she followed Elsa curiously. She lost sight of her within moments, of course, since the queen knew the place inside and out, the darkness swallowing her up.

The castle was indeed a giant place, Elsa often disappearing and reappearing in hallways and rooms Anna could have sworn weren't there before. She figured since she'd be living here, she might as well learn a bit from Elsa.

The days seemed to go by quickly for Anna, often watching Elsa go about things in the castle. As secluded as she was, she was efficient. She tended things of the castle quite well. Anna hadn't been given any orders so far, so she found an old broom in her closet and went about keeping the main hall clean. It was surprisingly dusty in the lighter parts of it, as if the doorway mostly went unused. And she could see why. Elsa rarely left the castle walls, and when she did, it was only to get things from the garden. Even though it was Winter, the plants grew as if they knew no limits. Elsa made herself all the meals and left Anna what was left of her gathered plants to prepare whatever she decided to make. She became creative with the food, trying out strange new recipes that she invented herself, since she couldn't find any cookbooks. At first she burned everything, but soon she found out what went with what and which spices would bring out a food's flavor. She was allowed to go outside, but not beyond the walls that separated the castle from the high mountains, so she often went exploring in the outdoors, running across many strange looking plants and a cat which mostly just watched with no interest. Magic seemed to flow through the castle, as she found out when an enormous blizzard swept through the land and the next day the garden was still growing as if nothing happened. Anna lived fairly happily, befriending a few animals outside and every day seeming to find a new passage or room. She quickly got used to the solitude and times of the night where she would hear the soft footsteps of Elsa doing unknown tasks. They rarely spoke, mostly because Anna was still too shy to open her mouth, but Elsa didn't ever she any anger or tell her if she wasn't doing a chore right. After a while Anna became accustomed to the quiet castle and enjoyed her time spent day by day exploring and keeping it clean.

That is, until someone knocked on the door,


	4. Chapter 4

Anna immediately swirled around to find the source of the noise. It had to have been a knock on the door. Elsa? No, why would she need to knock on her own door. Anna was so used to the silent castle and occasional hum of Elsa in her room that her heart nearly stopped when she heard the voice from the other side of the door.

"Hello?" such a simple word, but so new and strange. Anna had been living in the castle since Winter and Spring was soon to cover the lands with warmth. Even though she had lost track of time outside of morning and evening, she knew the snow should have melted long ago. She was used to the cold now, and it never made her bothered her now, so she didn't mind. She stood stone-still in her place, broom in hand and a feather duster in the other. Her eyes fixed upon the door as she walked, as if in a trance, to the doorway and with a hand dirty from cleaning, she placed her fingers on the icy knob. With an exhale of excitement, she opened it, even though she was scared. Elsa told her she couldn't leave, not that she couldn't talk to someone who came to the door. A man dressed in wealthy-looking cloths stood there. It wouldn't be hard for someone to guess he was most likely as high in status as Elsa, with fair, clean skin and a groomed look. Anna stared at the first human she'd seen for months besides Elsa, her voice caught in her throat.

"Excuse me, I am Prince Hans Westergaard of the Southern Isles. I have seen this castle upon traveling and wonder who lives here." Anna's eyes opened wider, if that was possible. Someone was talking? To _her? _It had to be a mistake.

"I-I think you must b-be looking for E-Elsa..." Anna struggled to keep herself from appearing too strange, grabbing her broom and trying to look as if she was hard at work. "I'm just Anna. I work here." She could feel him staring and locked eyes on the floor.

"Elsa? Who is that?"

"S-she's the one who lives here. She owns this place." Hans looked thoughtful for a moment. "Oh! I'll take you to her!" At least she could be useful in some way. A prince! A real prince was right in front of her.

"Thank you, miss Anna." she internally screamed in delight as she heard him call her her real name. Oh, she better not mess this up. All she had to do was find Elsa. Nothing could go wrong.

Anna accidentally felt the broom fall from her hands in her giddiness, creating a crash on the floor.

"S-sorry!" she mentally slapped herself. She had to get control over herself before she made herself look like any more of an idiot. She straightened herself up, keeping her eyes fixed on the ground as she led him up the stairway, gradually getting darker with less candles as they got higher. Elsa seemed be like a bat in that she stayed hidden in the shadows. Anna was used to her appearing out of nowhere, but when Elsa's deep blue eyes glowed at her from a room, she gasped. Hans was still behind the corner, so Elsa only saw Anna. "Elsa! I know it's late, but I have something to tell you!" Elsa gazed from the room for a moment, walking out slowly. Anna wasn't used to seeing her up close, but across from her on the opposite end of the long table or passing by in hallways.

"Yes, Anna?" Anna searched her mind for what she even came her for, feeling small in Elsa's gaze.

"I-I...well, he-look!" Anna pointed behind her as Hans appeared from around the corner.

Elsa's eyes shot open wide, immediately backtracking into the dark of a room. "Elsa, this is Prince Hans!" Elsa watched him with unblinking eyes, a glare replacing her usually calm face.

"What are you doing here?"

Hans replied, looking a bit confused, "Miss, I was passing by and saw-" Elsa cut him off.

"Leave this place at once!" she shouted in a surprisingly strong voice. Anna jumped back from her and backed into a corner as the sight before her took place. Hans moved forward, seemingly unfazed by the angered queen.

"But I just came here, miss. I mean no harm."

"You are not welcome here!" The hall they were in suddenly was becoming cold, to the point of breath appearing before their faces. The last thing Anna wanted to leave her safe spot in the corner, but she couldn't just let Elsa talk that way to a prince, a kind one at that.

"E-Elsa!" Anna finally got out, moving from the far corner she was in and slowly walking towards Elsa, though she could barely see her in the darkness. Elsa looked at her, Anna expecting her to get angry and shout at any moment. But Elsa remained silent, watching her intently. "Prince Hans means nobody any harm, he was just passing by and..." she suddenly didn't know what to say, staring into the deep blue eyes of the queen. What would she say? What could she say? "Elsa, I know you don't like people in here, especially me, but could he stay, just for a day? If-if he stays downstairs? I promise he wouldn't bother you. It's just that...I've been alone for so long...I would be so happy just to spend a little time with another human." Anna couldn't believe she was saying this. What right did she have to talk this way to a queen? Is Elsa was already this mad at someone as handsome and kind as Hans there was no way she could change her mind. Anna stared at the floor the whole time, not daring to look back into Elsa's angry eyes. She stood for so long not moving that she nearly flinched when Elsa spoke again.

"Leave by Midnight. Stay out of my sight." she then turned around and the door seemed to close itself behind her, blocking out the two people. Hans still looked confused, but very frightened.

"I'm sorry, your majesty, she, well, doesn't like people."

"Then why do you stay here?

"Well, I just clean and stay out of her way. I'm a nobody. You have family and a home, but this is my home" Hans' eyes widened.

"You're saying you forces you to stay here?"

"She didn't force me, she gave me a choice. If I left I couldn't come back. If I stayed I couldn't leave. I chose to stay." Anna let her head drop a little, knowing today would be the only day to talk to another person, maybe forever.

"That's awful. You deserve better." Anna laughed a little at this.

"I'm just a peasant, your Highness. I don't deserve to live in a big place like this at all. But I live a good, peaceful life all in all. I'm lucky" Hans looked at her for a moment.

"Well, today you are a princess. Show me a little of this castle." Anna looked up.

"You really want to see this place?" Hans chuckled.

"Yes!" Anna's feet nearly moved by themselves. They left the hallway and went downstairs. They were going to spend the whole day together and Anna would show him how to make the most wonderful pies. She could hardly wait.

Elsa sat on her bed, with her head in her hands. How could she let someone in? Why did she? How could someone change her mind? Surely Anna had put her under some kind of spell. She paced back and forth, the far off sound of laughter and talking making her head spin. Just one day, then he would be gone. Just one day.


End file.
